When You're My Hope It Causes Me Despair
by Lifewardenfictions
Summary: A glimpse into the pre Despair Incident relationship of two young students in Hope's Peak Academy, What exactly draws Ultimate Luck towards the Ultimate Fashonista? A companion piece to For Love of Despair. (DR1 and DRZero Spoilers)
1. Chapter 1

Even surrounded by people Junko Enoshima was always alone, and despite her happy facade she was tired of it. Being the Ultimate Fashonista she was always recognised, always in conversation with somebody, her social networks alone had thousands of people, many of whom were clamoring for her attention and favor; it was maddening. Despite the vast amount of conversations going on she never felt connected with those people, many of whom only cared to speak with her as long as she maintained her vapid and vain persona, that or some people (usually men) asked her for photos of the most interesting things and while she would never do it she certainly found the requests amusing.

When she transferred to Hopes Peak Academy Junko hoped that things would be different, and yet to her utterly delicious Despair things got even worse. The men, as always, were the predictable ones; they revered her, like lovesick puppies' always trying to win her heart, irritating. However to her surprise the women were even worse, they divided into two camps; those who hated her, and the sycophants. Junko was never sure whom she hated more, those who despised her and turned away from her when they found out about her modeling, or the sychophants who grabbed on like parasites and did everything in their power to claim some of her popularity for themselves. As time flowed on Junko grew bored with all of them and pushed away, adding a persona of an imperious queen she drove everybody to arms length; everybody but her dear sister Mukuro of course. Not that Mukuro was a good substitute for polite company, the Ultimate Soldier barely spoke a word, and she was hardly around as she had found her own little friend to pal around with; which was why Junko was shocked when said little friend first sat down at her lunch table.

"Hi I hope you don't mind if I sit here, I don't want to be rude or anything." The young man across from her stammered quietly. "Oh speaking of rude, my name is Makoto Naegi."

Junko was well aware of who he was, on the rare occasions that Mukuro spoke it was often about the young luckster, and despite herself Junko felt a certain amount of kinship with the boy who made her sister happy.

"I've heard much about you, my sister speaks most highly of you." Junko seized his hand in her own and gave it a gentle shake. "However I have to wonder what possessed you to sit here with me Naegi?"

Naegi looked at her even more sheepishly and stuttered quietly under his breath. "It's just I see you eating lunch alone all the time, and I thought that maybe you might occasionally like to have some company while you eat."

"Well aren't you just a sweetheart looking out for little old me, are you sure you don't just want the prestige of having lunch with the Ultimate Fashionista?" Junko said this teasingly, but she wasn't expecting the vehemence that Naegi responded with.

"No that's wrong, I don't care about that, everybody knows the Ultimate Fashionista." He said her ultimate title as though he was tasting something unpleasant. "You're more than that; I want the prestige of having lunch with Junko Enoshima, the real person behind the title." There was a slight silence following this pronouncement before Naegi began shoving his food into his mouth, obviously embarrassed.

Junko sat there stunned, if such a statement had come from anybody else she wouldn't have believed them, but it had been uttered with such sincerity that despite her cynical edge Junko felt inclined to trust him.

They didn't speak for the rest of lunch, choosing instead to focus on their food and occasionally glancing at each other. Eventually the bell rang and the two stood up, and without agreeing to do so, began walking to class together. As they approached the classroom Junko turned toward Naegi.

"Thanks for the company luck boy it was nice."

"It was my pleasure Enoshima."

As Naegi began to open the door into class Junko leaned seductively over and whispered into his ear.

"Come have lunch with me tomorrow ok?" And smirking at the stunned look on his face she strode into class, an unfamiliar feeling in her chest.

A/N: I decided to write a small multi chapter fic set in the same universe as For Love of Despair exploring the relationship between Junko and Naegi. It also fits strangely well with what's happening in my life so I figured it would be fun to write. If you're curious about my work or what's going on in my life feel free to check out my blog, the link is in my profile. And as always I would like to thank Spike Chunsoft for creating such an amazing world, my friend Lilfox who continues to inspire me even when she's out of my life, and of course all my readers and reviewers I couldn't do this without you guys.


	2. Chapter 2

If anybody were to see Junko after she left the public eye they would be hard pressed to recognise her as the Ultimate Fashionista, tucked into the secret haven that was her dorm room she took the opportunity to dress for comfort and not fashion, a rare experience in the modelling world.

"No that's not right; it'll never work that way." Junko growled as she crossed out yet another line out of her notebook. "This is why I need Mukuro, she's much better at figuring out this crap than me." Deciding that it would be better to take a break, rather than let her rage consume her, Junko stood and moved over to the snack drawer her sister kept in their shared desk. While she idly munched on some sort of survival cracker that her sister had left, Junko paused to wonder where her dear sister had run off too while they were in the midst of their grand planning. Mukuro had been distant with her the last two weeks, in fact Junko could recall her becoming scarce ever since Naegi had started having lunch with her, "How strange." She mused to herself; then again Mukuro had always been the quiet one so perhaps she was just imaging things. Lost in thought Junko almost didn't notice the tentative knock at her door, and even then it took a second louder knock before she actually willed her legs to walk over to the door and open it. Makoto Naegi stood on the other side, a history textbook in one hand, and a small bag of what looked like cookies in the either.

"Good afternoon Enoshima," he quietly stuttered, "I was looking for Mukuro, she promised she would help me study for our history exams this Friday." He stared at the floor, though he kept glancing up at her and blushing slightly.

It took Junko a moment to realise that the luckster was checking her out, clad in plaid pyjama pants, and a t-shirt, she didn't think she was much to look at, but it was slightly flattering nonetheless.

"I'm afraid my sister isn't in right now Naegi, but I was just about to study for exams myself, perhaps you'd be willing to do it with me?" Junko hadn't the foggiest idea why she'd asked him, but she could hardly change her mind now, especially with the way her new friends face lit up.

"Absolutely, I wouldn't mind that at all Enoshima, I umm... brought snacks."

Junko smiled, and pulled the young man into her room, "Naegi, you just said the magic words."

The two settled on the floor and spread out their workbooks, trying to make space for everything.

"All right," Junko began, "Let's start with European History…"

* * *

A few hours later and the two companions had finished up all their work and begun simply sitting together, laughing and telling stories.

"And the funny part was, Asahina never forgot her swimsuit, so she didn't have to wear the smaller one in the first place!" Junko let out a peal of laughter as she finished her story, and rolled on the floor, mirth dancing in her eyes. Naegi for his part gave a small smile, a slight blush on his face, most likely from imaging the busty swimmer in an even smaller suit than she usually wore. As Junko came down from her laughter high she noticed Naegi standing and gathering his stuff together.

"Hey, you bored with me already then luck boy?"

"Not at all Enoshima it's just, well I'm starving and the cafeteria closes shortly, so I need to go get food."

"No way, you're coming to dinner with me; we can go to my favourite café nearby."

"But we aren't allowed to leave campus Enoshima; we could get in serious trouble."

"You're kidding me," Junko stared in askance, "You've never snuck off campus before?"

Naegi blushed, and Junko began to giggle again.

"Oh luck boy, you and I are going to turn you into a serious rebel, just gimme a second to change." Junko moved to her closest, and without a trace of self-consciousness slid out of her pyjama pants and slid on a casual skirt. She heard a sharp gasp behind her and with mild amusement turned around to find Naegi nervously facing away from her. With a slight malicious twist she slinked over to the nervous young man.

"What's a matter, I bet a cutie like you has seen lots of girls without their pants, why so shy?"

Naegi barely stammered out a response, and Junko laughingly grabbed his arm.

"Come on, lemme show you the best way to get out of this place." And with one last laugh Junko yanked him out the door.

* * *

"You were right Enoshima, that place was absolutely delicious, I can't wait to go back." Naegi whispered as they slipped quietly back into the dormitory.

"Told you it was awesome, and so was sneaking out, we had a total blast."

The teens slowly made their way back to Junkos' room, and after retrieving Naegis' book, she turned towards him.

"Thanks for the cookies luck boy, I had a really nice day."

"I did too Enoshima," Naegi smiled, "Perhaps we can do it again sometime?"

"Perhaps we can, if you promise to do one thing for me," Junko narrowed her eyes playfully. "My name is Junko, enough of this Enoshima crap, okay Makoto?"

"If you say so…Junko, I'll try to remember." Makoto turned and with a slight wave began to walk down the hall, careful not to be caught in the girls' dorm after hours.

Distracted with thoughts of her day Junko was startled, when a quiet voice whispered from behind her.

"Have a good day sister?" Mukuro sat on her bed, the notebook Junko had set aside earlier in her hand, "I finished that design you seemed to be having difficulty with."

Junko seized the notebook and looked at the page, and as she did a fresh burst of excitement seized her.

"I really like the bear shape sis, now we just need to decide on a colour scheme."

A/N: Not 100% happy with this chapter, but I certainly hope you guys enjoyed it. Hopefully I'll be able to keep this story frequently updated, Don't forget to check my blog, which is linked in my **profile** for updates on what's happening with me and my stories, I'll also be doing review responses and asking for your guys opinions on things so check it out if you're interested. Also I just started a Tumblr to put some of my work on (I have no idea what the hell I'm even doing) so if you're willing to follow or reblog or whatever the you do on Tumblr it's at not required but I appreciate the support, you can also find that link in my profile as well. Anyway as always I want to thank Spike Chunsoft for creating such an amazing world, my friend LilFox, whom I miss and hope will see this one day. And of course to all the people who have read, reviewed, followed and favorited; I wouldn't be able to do this without you guys.


	3. Chapter 3

"I swear to god the next person who asks me that is going to have their eyes torn from their skull."

Junko was fuming, being as high profile as she was she was no stranger to irritating rumours, but whatever idiot had started the one that she and Makoto were dating was quickly becoming her most hated person.

The main problem with the rumour was that it was stupid, certainly she and Makoto had been spending a lot of time together, but that didn't mean anything as Makoto spent time with many of the girls at Hopes Peak. Junko knew for a fact that he could often be found in the company of Aoi Asahina, running all around the campus at all sorts of hours. She also knew that he spent at least some time each week with that Kirigiri chick, not to mention her own sister; hell even that shut in Fukawa had been seen chatting casually with him, so why was she, Junko the one the rumour was about?

"You seem particularly agitated by this example of gossip sister, is there a specific reason why?" Mukoro asked quietly.

"Because I'm Junko Enoshima, I don't date people, and of all the people it could be why would they choose Makoto?"

"Is there something wrong with Makoto sister?" Mukuro seemed strangely curious about the topic. "Do you think that he is beneath you or something?"

"You know damn well that isn't what this is about, don't turn it around on me!"

Mukuro looked amused at this outburst, which for the Ultimate Soldier meant one eyebrow quirked slightly up at an angle. "So what exactly is it about then?"

Junko glanced at her sister in irritation before sighing quietly. "It's just, I'm sick of people assuming anybody I spend time with is somehow my lover, we're just friends."

"So you're saying you wouldn't want to date Makoto then?" Mukuro sounded almost hopeful, "He's very sweet I can't imagine why you wouldn't."

"You're right, he's sweet and cute and funny and none of that matters because we're… just friends." Junko repeated the point, a tinge of melancholy in her voice. "Anyway, we don't have time for this, we have work to do, we don't have much time left to make this work, and I'm getting tired of the delays."

Mukuro looked as though she were going to continue her line of questioning, but wilted at the glare Junko threw at her.

"Very well sister, we'll shelve the discussion for later, perhaps after your date with Makoto tonight."

Junko didn't stop glaring the rest of the day.

* * *

"I don't understand why one would wear this sort of thing often; it is highly impractical, and uncomfortable." Mukuro stared at herself in a mirror; she was dressed as Junko might have been on an average weekend, a short skirt and low cut jacket that heavily emphasized her chest. "Alas," she thought to herself, "unlike my sister I lack the frame to pull it off properly." She idly played with one of the long blonde twin tails perched on her head. "And hair this long is heavily unmanageable; it could easily be grabbed in combat."

There was a knock at the door, and thinking it was her sister having once again forgotten her door key she opened it, and discovered Makoto standing on the other side.

"Hello Mukuro, umm why do you look like Junko?"

Mukuro stared dumbly, unable to find a quick answer for the young luckster and she simply stepped aside motioning for him to enter her room. Makoto stepped inside, a questioning look still on his face and Mukuro realized she had yet to give him a proper answer for his question.

"We were just curious what I would look like, if Junko and I had been identical twins, so I was just trying some stuff on for a laugh."

"I never figured you for much of the laughing type, but I suppose everybody has their secrets."

Mukuro sighed and removed her wig, placing it carefully on her desk before turning back towards Makoto.

"My sister stepped out for a brief moment, I'm sure she'll be back shortly."

"That's fine," Makoto replied, "I was actually hoping to speak with you privately." He paused for a moment, as though trying to figure out how exactly to phrase his next words. "Has your sister heard the rumors?"

"She has indeed, and it would be most unwise to mention it to her, she's not pleased with it."

Makotos' face suddenly fell, "I see, I suppose I can understand why that would be, nobody should be associated with me like that."

Mukuro felt a sudden surge of sympathy for the young man, and seized his hand in hers. "My sister likes you very much, she just has much on her mind and she isn't in a place to be dating at the moment, but I know she would consider you an excellent candidate if she was."

Makoto looked slightly cheered at this thought, but any further conversation was stalled as Junko waltzed into the room.

"Sorry I'm late; I was trying to figure out the best place for us to watch the meteor shower tonight." Junko smiled widely, "I found it, but we're going to have to hurry if we want to make it in time."

Makoto stood up swiftly and moved towards her, "I'm ready."

"Are you coming with us sister?"

Something incomprehensible flashed behind Mukuros' eyes, "I'd better not, I have some things to finish up tonight."

Junko stared at her sister for a moment before shrugging, "Suit yourself." And seizing Makoto by the arm she turned and dragged him back out into the night.

Mukuro sat by herself for a few moments more, wondering why her chest hurt, it wasn't until the first tear slid down her cheek that she realized she was sad.

* * *

"Junko, I'm sorry about all the rumors, I never meant for them to start."

Makoto and Junko lay side by side, on the Hopes Peak roof, watching as the shimmer of falling stars happen above them.

"It's fine Makoto, such is the life of a glamorous super model." Junko turned her head towards him, "Besides I can think of worse people that the rumor could have been about."

Makoto turned his head as well and began to say something else when their eyes met; in that moment something passed between them, something new and strange, and before he realised it he found himself leaning forward pressing his lips against her. She was still for a moment, and he began to feel panic set in, when her hands suddenly twined around his neck and pulled him closer. He was aware of very little from that point on, all that mattered was her smell, her taste, how her lips felt on his; until slowly she pulled away.

"I'm sorry I shouldn't have done that, we're just friends." Makoto mumbled quietly.

Junko laughed, her hands still wrapped around his neck she pulled him close again.

"It's alright, friends kiss." And then her mouth made its way back to his.

Neither of them made it back to their own dorm rooms that night.

A/N: Well another chapter in the bag, and we're about halfway through the story, I'm thinking I'll wrap this up at about 6 chapters, but that can change. Don't forget you can always check the progress of my stories and just my general life stuff at my blog, the link is in my author profile. As Always I want to thank Spike Chunsoft for creating such an amazing world. I want to thank my friend LilFox, whom I miss and hope see's this story one day. And of course a HUGE thank you to everybody who has read, reviewed, favorited or followed, I honestly never expected to see the support I've been getting so thank you guys so much.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: This chapter is not fluffy, bit darker, hope you like it.

Everything changed for Junko Enoshima after she began dating Makoto Naegi, and for the first time she could recall she felt like a normal girl, in a normal high school. Granted things had been weird between her and Makoto for a while, he had taken the kiss they had first shared as a sign of her desire to date him and when she had expressed the desire to keep things casual he hadn't been pleased, they ended up not speaking for three days. Even after their reconciliation he'd been distant with her, speaking less, and not starting any form of contact unless she did first, that hurdle had taken her another two weeks to overcome. Eventually his innate desire to be close to her again had won out, and things went back to how they'd been before albeit with one slight caveat, they were now kissing. Junko sometimes felt guilty about what she was doing, she knew that Makoto was feeling more than she was every time they kissed, but she was comfortable with things as they were, this way she could kiss him, but she wasn't putting their friendship at risk, it was easier that way. So things passed that way for another month, but something changed one night, and as she kissed him she found the words he longed to hear bubble out of her mouth.

"We should be a real couple, like tell people about us and everything."

Makoto stared at her for a few moments, a small smile slowly spreading across his face and he'd gleefully agreed, and despite herself Junko felt her own joy at his acceptance become palpable. And so they'd become a real couple, holding hands and kissing in public and before long it was such a common sight that all the rumours about them faded, Junko was happy about that. To his further credit Makoto had turned out to be a better kind of boyfriend than she had expected, she had expected that she would have the upper hand with the normally submissive luckster, but she had been sorely mistaken. Initially she had certainly been instrumental in initiating their physical contact, but as he became more comfortable with her he had become surprisingly dominant, and Junko found that she didn't mind at all. Things continued to go well for the two of them, but Junko suddenly found herself on the receiving end of a continuingly cold Mukuro; not that Mukuro had ever been particularly warm in the first place, but something had made her even colder and Junko couldn't figure out what exactly it was. And so a month passed and despite Mukuros behaviour Junko was content, until the night everything changed.

* * *

Junko was nervous, a rare occurrence for the young woman, but sitting on her bed waiting for Makoto she could feel the butterflies in her stomach. Mukuro was gone, Junko had asked her for privacy that evening, to give her and Makoto space for a "special evening", Mukuro hadn't said a thing, simply seized an overnight bag and walked out the door, which Junko took to be an agreement. So here she sat, alone and fidgeting, waiting for Makoto to arrive; because tonight was the night they were going to consummate their relationship.

Despite her image, sex for Junko was something utterly personal, something she couldn't share with another individual unless she felt genuinely close to them, and now she was planning on sharing it with Makoto. She did everything in her power to control her nerves, and prevent herself from glancing around at the clock, but she was unsuccessful in that endeavour and ended up staring forlornly as the seconds seemed to drag ever slower. She was standing up to pace the room for perhaps the third time in a ten minute period when the ever familiar knock of her boyfriend rapped quickly on the door. With one last nervous twitch she steeled herself, and opened the door to admit him.

"Hey, you look lovely as always, I brought some dinner for us."

Junko smiled as Makoto held out her favourite meal from their diner, a cocky grin on his face, and suddenly her nerves disappeared. The two of them enjoyed their meal, acting as if they weren't about to do what they'd both planned on doing this evening. After the last bit of food disappeared however her nerves resurfaced, and judging by the look on her boyfriend's face so had his.

"So anyway, umm, where do we go from here?" Makoto asked quietly, twiddling his thumbs slowly.

Junko opened her mouth to respond, only to find herself lunging at Makoto, smashing her lips against his. Makoto responded with equal ardour, kissing her back fiercely and Junko began to lose herself in sensation. She was dimly aware of Makoto pushing her gently back onto her bed, his lips on her neck, then her cheek, then back to her own lips, like soft moths landing gently on her skin. Slowly he began to kiss lower, starting at her collarbone than moving lower and Junko simply melted away, he was wonderful, he made her happy, he was taking away all of her despair…

Junko was suddenly seized with panic and pushed Makoto, who had begun to kiss her thigh, away from her.

"I'm sorry Junko, did I do something wrong?" Makoto looked perplexed, however that turned to concern when he realised that Junko had tears streaming down her face. "What's a matter, are you alright?"

"You're going to leave me!" Junko choked out, "Once you get what you want you're going to leave just like all the others have."

Makoto stared at her in shock, and not a little bit of hurt, but slowly moved closer to try and comfort her.

"I would never do that Junko, why would you possibly think that?"

Junko mumbled incoherently, something about ruining the moment, and Makoto had to come up with a response on the fly.

"It's alright, you didn't ruin any moment, it's alright if you're not ready for this yet, I can wait." This was apparently the wrong thing to say as Junko started up, rage now slipping on to her face.

"I am ready damn you, how dare you say that!"

Makoto was completely nonplussed, but found himself getting flustered and reacting to her incendiary mood, his own temper begging to rise.

"You clearly aren't, or you wouldn't be crying about this, so don't lie!"

I'm not lying, this is just a big deal to me, I have to be sure I see a future with somebody before I give myself to them.

Makoto stood up at this pronouncement, irritation clear on his face.

"You keep doing this to me, you pull me close and push me away, I can't do that, if you don't want to be with me that's ok, but you need to be honest about it because if we get more serious and you're lying somebody is going to end up hurt." Silence followed his outburst and he began to make his way towards her door. "I care for you Junko, but if you make me fall and then turn around and hurt me, I don't think I'll ever forgive you." With one final glance at the still weeping supermodel he exited the dorm room, and as Junko continued to sob, the clatter of the door swinging closed behind him was her only company.

* * *

Two days later Makoto sat forlornly in his room, he'd apologised for storming out on Junko, and she'd merely nodded and said she no longer wished to discuss it. As he tried to finish the essay he was working on he heard his lock click open, turning he saw Junko walking in, the spare key he had given her in her hand. He opened his mouth to speak, but found it covered before he could get a word out.

"I'm ready, for real; I can't imagine my future without you, and no matter what happens we'll deal with it together."

"Are you absolutely sure?"

"Positive, luck boy."

"When should we plan it then?"

Junko smiled, "I was thinking right now."

A/N 2: Not as happy as previous chapters, but then again we already know there won't be a happy ending, sorry about the delay on this chapter, had some IRL stuff happening that got the writer's block flowing, as always if you want to keep up with updates and where things are at story wise you can always check my authors blog, the link is in the profile. Anyway as always thanks to Spike Chunsoft for such an amazing world, my friend Lilfox whom I hope reads this one day, and of course all you readers thank you, thank you ,thank you so much for your support


	5. Chapter 5

No matter how much he tried to convince himself otherwise, Makoto could not shake the feeling that something was wrong with Junko; and he was determined to figure out why he felt that way. Certainly things hadn't been much different, the two of them still spent an abundant amount of time together, they were still intimate, but something was up, occasionally he would see something...dark and distant in Junkos' eyes, and Makoto intended to get to the bottom of it.

* * *

"Fukawa, can I ask you something rather strange?" Makotos first stop on his quest for answers was the quiet, but surprisingly insightful young writer, whom he shared a strange, but friendly relationship.

Fukawa was busy scribbling away in her notebook, but she glanced over slightly and raised an eyebrow, an invitation for Makoto to continue.

"Well you see Junko has been acting strange recently, she's been really distant with me, and since you're the big romance author you might have an idea of what's going on?"

Fukawa didn't answer him immediately; the only indication that she'd even heard him was the lack of movement coming from her pencil, but slowly she turned towards him a look of thoughtful contemplation on her face.

"Perhaps there's somebody else." Makoto smiled wryly at his friend.

"Leave it to you to go to the grimmest of solutions, but yes I had already considered it myself." The pair shared a short look before Makoto continued.

"The only other person she spends any significant time with besides me is that neurologist guy, but he seems to positively hate her from everything I've observed."

"Yes, but how exactly does she feel about him, that could still be affecting her attitude."

Makoto sighed, "I guess that's true, but the only one who would know that would be her."

"Or possibly her sister might." Fukawa interjected gently.

"I hadn't even thought about that, you're amazing Fukawa, I know exactly where to go."

Fukawa watched with a small smile as her friend raced towards the dorm, "Good luck my friend." She muttered under her breath, "Somebody certainly deserves to get the one they love."

* * *

Junko was having a great day, everything was going exactly as she planned, or at least everything had been until her sister had opened her stupid mouth.

"Makoto suspects that something is wrong sister, he might figure our plan out if you don't do something."

Junkos' eyes narrowed in irritation, and she stalked over to her sister.

"Just how do you know this information?" She snarled.

"He came to me seeking advice, he was curious on the exact nature of your relationship with Matsuda." Mukuro appeared unconcerned at her sisters' vehemence and continued to casually clean the firearm she kept under her pillow. "I told him you were simply working on an assignment together."

"You what!?"

Mukuro stared passively at her sister, "Do you honestly need me to repeat the statement?"

"Now he's a loose end, and this close to completion we can't afford loose ends!" Junko was becoming increasingly erratic, and began to mutter to herself. "Now I have to fix this, I have to get him to stop snooping; this is your fault, now I have to do this!" And with this dramatic statement Junko stormed out of the dorm room.

"That cannot be good; I hope she doesn't do anything too crazy."

* * *

Makoto was holding it together, at least that's what he was telling himself, as he felt the wave of anguish coursing through his veins.

"You want to do what?" He could barely hear himself over the strange roaring in his ears.

"I think we need to break up, I just don't think we're working out."

"I thought you were happy with me."

"I am it's just… I think we're better as friends than lovers."

Makoto stared at Junko, unable to believe what was happening, he's sensed her distance, but he hadn't anticipated this. He opened his mouth, but closed it again, not able to come up with a proper response.

"You do know I love you right, you'll always be my best friend?" Junko looked almost sincere, but still in her eyes he could see that distance, that glint, and that was the moment Makoto Naegi broke.

"I…I…I… I hate you," he managed to choke out. "You lied to me, you used me, you let me fall in love with you; and the whole time you were planning this, you're a monster."

Junko looked taken aback for a slight moment, before rage clouded her face.

"Fuck you, I didn't lie, I just…don't feel for you like you feel for me."

Makoto, normally so rational and hopeful, couldn't stop the pain and rage he was feeling bubble out.

"And yet you lie about it until the very end, I was wrong, you aren't a monster, you're a coward."

"Coward?!"

"Yes, a coward, because you aren't lying to me, you're lying to yourself, you feel something and it scares the hell out of you, so you're running away." Makoto could feel his teeth clenching as he glared at the young model. "I hate you, get out of my room."

Junko opened her mouth as though to say something, but the burning look in her former lovers' eyes unsettled something in her, and she fled.

"The hell are you doing here, we already met today?" Matsuda glowered as Junko stormed into his office, pure despair written on every inch of her face.

"We're going with the Otonashi plan now, tonight." She practically screeched.

"But it's not quite ready yet..."

"I don't care, clean me out, I don't want to remember anything!"

And that night Ryoko Otonashi was born.

A/N: Hey all sorry for the slow update here, still not super happy with this chapter, but such is an author's curse. There will only be one more chapter of this story, not sure yet when I'll try to get it up, don't forget to check the BlogSpot if you're wondering what's up, I try and update at least that every few days. Of course as always thanks are required, for Spike Chunsoft for creating an amazing world, My friend Lilfox, my inspiration and own Junko, and of course for all you amazing readers who've stuck by and read this story, I wouldn't be anywhere without you.


	6. Chapter 6

Makoto Naegi was completely healed, at least that was what he told himself when he looked in the mirror every morning, if only so he could convince himself. Things had changed a lot since his lover had vanished, and a month later Makoto still found himself thinking things through. The first few days had been the hardest, he hadn't the desire to do anything; he couldn't eat because his stomach was tied in knots, he couldn't sleep because when he did he would dream of Junko, class became nothing but a chance to sit and brood while everybody came up and asked him what had happened, all and all the first few days were a blur of sadness. Luckily the stupid questions ended on the fourth day, a combination of Makotos standoffish behaviour and the arrival of a new student Ryoko Otonashi, leaving Makoto to stew alone with his thoughts, at least for a few more days.

A week after D-Day, as he had begun to self-deprecatingly call it, he found himself sitting on the edge of the school roof, staring at the city skyline.

"Some people might grow concerned that you're near a long fall." Came a cool impassive voice, nearly startling Makoto of the edge. When he regained his equilibrium he slowly turned and was surprised to find Mukuro standing almost directly behind him, a look of slight concern on her face.

"I wasn't planning on going off, just wanted to look at the skyline." Mukuro looked at him curiously for a moment, before perching herself on the edge of the roof next to him.

"Why?"

"I was just thinking, there are millions of people in this city alone, not to mention the country, or even the whole world." Makoto paused, "So why am I so upset about just one of those people?"

"Perhaps that person was simply special in a way all those other aren't." Mukuro replied.

"I fell in love with her you know?" Makoto made this comment blandly, as though it were the most routine statement in the world. "I never told her, wanted to make sure that she felt the same before I made the leap, and now I can't ever tell her, not that she would care if I did." Makoto sighed heavily, "Unrequited love sucks."

"It most certainly does." Mukuros' voice came out heavy and Makoto began to turn towards her, only to find the young woman's lips pressed tightly to his. Makoto's brain entered panic mode, and it took him a few seconds before he gently pushed the Ultimate Soldier away.

"I'm terribly sorry," she muttered, "I should not have done that." Mukuro stood swiftly and began to walk swiftly away. "I'm sorry; I have to go pack for my next mission." Makoto moved to follow her, but was quickly outpaced and she disappeared from his sight. Makoto sighed and walked back to his dorm, this school year could not get any more complicated. However unbeknownst to either the Soldier or the Luckster, another person had witnessed them.

* * *

The next few weeks were better, every morning things seemed a little bit brighter, and Makoto went to bed a little bit happier. There were bad days of course, but they were less and less frequent and less powerful as well, usually only flaring up when he caught a glimpse of Junko strolling down the hall. For her part Junko seemed distant from everybody, she walked down the halls alone, ate alone, and hardly spoke to anybody, even Mukuro had seemed to vanish into thin air, a fact that Makoto was slightly glad about, he really didn't need to add that drama as well. Junko's solitary nature went unnoticed by mostly everybody else, as most of them were enraptured with the new girl. Ryoko Otonashi was interesting, Makoto would give her that, and she was certainly friendly enough, but he had yet to discover why everybody was so interested in her, he suspicion was that it had something to do with her physical attributes, but he wouldn't say that out loud. As time passed Makoto felt a slight desire to try and get to know the girl better, and vowed he would speak to her the next day. The next day however, Otonashi had vanished, leaving behind something so horrifying the students hadn't even been told about it, and that was just the beginning of a series of terrible events.

* * *

Another month later and Makoto found himself back on the roof, unable to stop himself from coming to his and Junkos' special spot.

"She misses you know, can't you just speak to her?" Mukuro was seated next to him, enjoying the early summer breeze; things had been happening outside the schools walls and in an effort to keep them safe the school had decided to keep the students inside, and with the violence erupting outside the walls most had agreed.

"If she misses me so much why doesn't she tell me herself, wouldn't kill her to try?" Makoto was irritated, part of his time with Mukuro had been predicated on two simple conditions, they didn't mention Junko, and they didn't mention their kiss.

"Perhaps she would if you didn't turn and walk away from her anytime you two end up near each other." Makoto glowered angrily for a moment.

"Then I guess she'll just have to find a way to corner me then."

"Perhaps she already has done so." Mukuro gave a pointed look over Makoto's shoulder; he turned, and found himself face to face with Junko."

"I miss you stupid, so will you at least talk to me?"

"You have 5 minutes."

Junko bounced happily on the balls of her feet for a brief moment before turning towards her sister.

"Mukuro, would you give us a few minutes?" The Ultimate Soldier simply nodded, before turning and leaving the two in peace.

"I never meant to hurt you, you know?" Junko cautiously began.

"Lovely, it still happened."

"Are you going to be difficult this entire time?"

"Most likely yes"

Junko glared, "Fine if you're going to be an ass about it I'll just say my piece and go." She sighed, "I miss having you in my life Makoto, you're my best friend, so will you just…come back already?"

Makoto didn't say anything, simply continued to glare, and as such they sat there in silence for four minutes. Eventually Junko simply leaned in and kissed him gently on the cheek.

"I'll be waiting Makoto; it's worth it to be friends again." And with that she turned and followed her sister off the roof. Makoto watched her walk away, taking particular notice of the way her skirt moved.

"Yeah, friends." He muttered quietly, feeling a slight pain in his chest. With a sigh he stood, and also began to get off the roof, he idly wondered if Aoi was in her room, he needed to talk to somebody about this, and he knew his heart wouldn't let him alone until he did.

"Well," he said to himself, "At least things can't get much worse."

A/N: So I know I said this was the last chapter but… it's not. While trying to write this chapter I had an idea for one final group of scenes that I didn't want too just tack on to the end of this one, so there will actually be one more chapter. If you ever want to know what's up with the stories (or just me in general), give the blog a look, link is in my profile. By now you know how this whole thanking thing goes. Spike Chunsoft, Lilfox and of course all you amazing readers and reviewers; I wouldn't be able to do this without you guys so thank you so very much.


	7. Chapter 7

"There," Junko exclaimed with satisfaction in her voice, "that should hold it nicely."

Stepping away, Junko happily admired her handiwork, and smirked as Mukuro slammed a foot into the steel plate now covering the window, before letting out a low grunt that meant she deemed the covering passable.

"I have to admit I would have never expected to see you doing hard manual labour Junko, there's just something attractive about the world's greatest model, working in the muck like the rest of us." Makoto grinned playfully as said model turned to face him, the smirk still on her face.

"Well if we're all going to be stuck in this school until whatever is going on out there blows over, I figured I might as well be helpful."

"Fair enough, I can't fault that logic, forgive me your Highness." Makoto bowed mockingly to the young woman.

Despite the joking tone in Makotos voice Junko felt the smile slipping from her face, things had been incredibly tense between them in the past months, and now to top it off they were going to be locked in the same building together for the foreseeable future; and as much as she told herself that it didn't bother her she knew she was lying to herself.

"I guess I'll go let the headmaster that this room is finished, and once the others finish up their rooms the school should be completely secure." With a parting glance at her sister, Junko sighed and quickly exited the room, Mukuro waited until her sisters footsteps had faded before turning towards Makoto.

"One of these days one of you two is going to have to cave and actually talk about things."

Makoto glowered for a moment before shaking his head.

"I don't believe either of us have anything to talk about, everything is over and done with, no need to dredge it all back up."

Mukuro glared fiercely, uncharacteristically strong emotion written on her face.

"You're still miserable without her, I'm not stupid you know, I can occasionally piece together what people are feeling."

"My feelings on the matter are irrelevant, she's made it quite clear she has no desire to interact with me beyond what's polite, and I have no desire to be subject to hostility anymore."

"So you'll do nothing, tell yourself you're alright and come slinking out of a different girls room each night in attempt to show yourself that everything is better now."

"Seems like it, been working so far." Makoto replied, a sad smile gracing his face.

"Did it ever occur to you that Junko isn't speaking to you because she feels confused, you didn't pursue her, you didn't even try to keep her, you just let her leave, for somebody who was supposed to love her you sure did give up quick, perhaps she's hurt."

"She's hurt?!" Makoto suddenly exploded, "how could she possibly be hurt, she's the one who left me, she's the one who found somebody else, she's the one who seems so happy now that I left."

Mukuro watched as Makoto, despite his smaller stature, approached her his rage evident on his face.

"She doesn't have to avoid our mutual friends because they all took her side, she doesn't feel her heart plummet into her stomach anytime somebody mentions my name, she doesn't have to smile and laugh and pretend everything is okay, so she has no right to hate me, to feel hurt, that's completely illogical."

Mukuro smiled gently at the young man and slowly brought her arms up and hugged him gently to her chest.

"Sometimes the heart isn't logical my dearest friend."

Makoto slowly brought his arms back to her as well and began to sob.

"I just want to stop hurting, I don't want to think about her anymore, I don't want to succeed at something and yet the only one I want to share it with hates me, I just wish I could forget her, but she broke me."

"I've always admired your ability to feel hope and stay optimistic in the worst of circumstances, and even now I admire it, when it's hurting you."

"You love Junko so fiercely that even when you believe she hates you, you hope she'll return, a week from now, a month, a year, that no matter how angry you get at each other your bond is stronger than that, and your head hates you because it wants you to let go of that hope, to save yourself from that pain and so you fight yourself, your head and heart and it makes things all that much tougher."

"You have to forgive yourself, it's not a crime to love somebody."

Makoto pulled away from the Soldier, attempting to wipe his tears away at the same time.

"Thanks for the advice Mukuro,but I think I should be alone for a while."

Mukuro nodded slightly and with a quick pivot she exited the room, leaving Makoto to his thoughts, as she walked one final thought crossed her mind.

"My dearest friend, my love, I hope you find your happiness."

* * *

Two days later Makoto found himself sitting back on his special place on the roof, despite the headmasters insistence that it was unsafe, Makoto felt he had to come here one last time before the door was sealed, and the inside of Hope's Peak became his only reality. As he sat on the edge he briefly thought to himself, as he often did, how easy it would be to simply pitch himself over the side and fall, he didn't think the thoughts were serious, yet he couldn't say that he entirely ignored them either.

"I had a feeling I would find you up here, you're nothing if not predictable Luck Boy."

Makoto knew who it was without turning around and he sighed heavily.

"And how may I help you tonight Enoshima?"

The woman in question sighed and sat herself on the edge next to Makoto, slightly closer than might be considered appropriate.

"We had some really good times up here didn't we?"

"Indeed we did, thank you though, I'd almost forgot the reason for my crippling depression."

The two young students sat in silence for a moment before Junko spoke again.

"I don't hate you, I just… it's hard."

"Yeah, I guess I get it," Makoto replied unhelpfully, "I've had my share of that as well."

Junko scooted herself closer, so that they were practically touching, and Makoto tensed up slightly.

"I really did have feelings for you; it wasn't some sort of act." Junko stared plaintively at the Makoto, whom was determinedly looking straight ahead.

"I have a difficult time believing that, no disrespect intended."

"No you're right, I did something really shitty, and I handled it poorly, I'm sorry."

Makoto sighed heavily, but finally glanced towards her.

"It's ok, things happen, I survived, thank though, I appreciate it, I honestly do."

Junko smiled at this small concession, and with a nod stood up.

"I'll take that for now, works for me." She began to walk back towards the door.

"Junko, I never stopped loving you, even when I was mad at you, you'll always be my best friend, and I guess I just wanted to say that."

Junko smiled to herself, "I'm glad we don't hate each other anymore Makoto." And with that the young woman disappeared back into the school.

"Yeah me too," Makoto muttered to himself, "and things can only go up from here."

* * *

Junko stalked back into her room, and smiled at her sister.

"The plan is all set to go, once the roof is sealed tomorrow, we can begin."

"Are you sure you wish to continue with your plan sister, once we start we won't be able to stop?" Mukuro looked pensively for a moment, "And you just made things better with Makoto, are you truly going to let your despair win when you finally regained your hope?"

"Of course silly'" Junko giggled, "He's our ace in the hole, no matter what happens he'll always be on our side, even if they gain all their memories, even if the worst case happens and they figure everything out, he'll never betray his dearest Junko."

Mukuro stared impassively at her sister, before shaking her head and approaching her.

"That is an incredibly cruel way to treat somebody who loves you."

"Don't worry dear sister, he'll survive, both of us will ensure it, and then it'll just be us here in this place forever, because I love him too, which reminds me." With a happy bounce Junko turned around, before swinging her hand in a blurring open hand slap that staggered Mukuro. "Don't you dare ever kiss him again, he's my lover, not yours, if I didn't need you for this plan I would show my displeasure in a much more severe way."

"My mistake, it won't happen again." Muttered Mukuro, shocked that even she hadn't anticipated Junko's speed and the depths of her madness. "I will go get the bears ready."

After Mukuro had left, Junko lay down on her bed and let out a mad giggle.

"It all comes to fruition tomorrow, all my work; nothing can possibly ruin my plan." And as she faded into sleep Junko felt Despair consume her utterly.

* * *

A/N: And there you go, the final chapter, sorry it took so long, the reasons for it are a long story full of excitement treachery and heartbreak, and by that I mean a small not very interesting story that only has heartbreak, but hey as always you can read it in my personal blog, you can find the link in my profile, otherwise thank you guys so much for reading I wouldn't be able to do this without you guys.


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